Flat-bar knitting machine and the production of fabrics thereon



April 24, 1934. R s 1,955,970

FLAT-BAR KNITTING MACHINE AND THE PRODUCTION OF FABRICS THEREON Filed-Ja 5, 1932 3 Sheets-Sheet l 24 III III 9 .25 2610 167/ 2 I. (Z v 19 Ap ril 24, s 1,955,970

FLAT-BAR KNITTING MACHINE AND THE PRODUCTION OF FABRICS THEREON Filed Jan. '5, 1932 :s Sheets-Sheet 2 Jm/en on April 24,; 1934.

FLAT-BAR KNITTING MACHINE AND THE PRODUCTION OF FABRICS THEREON 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Jan. 1932 A A H 5 mm y L DVD/WP $3? I K Q W L/ L/ TWA A.

\FZI I I n I Patented Apr. 24, 1934 FLAT-BAR KNITTING MACHINE AND THE PRODUCTlON F FABRICS THEREON Robert Kirkland Mills,

Sherwood, Nottingham,

England, assignor to Hosiery Developments. Limited, Nottingham, England Application January 5,

1932, Serial No. 534,868

In Great Britain March 28, 1929 8 Claims.

This invention comprises improvements in fiat-bar knitting machines and ,in the production of fabrics thereon, and has more particularly for its object to provide means whereby on a fiat-bar machine, such for example as a machine of the cottons patent type, fabric can'be produced wherein the tendency to rove or ladder is minimized or eliminated.

The type of fabric it is desired to produce on a machine as above is described in the specification of my application for Patent No. 419,228 filed Jan. 8, 1930 wherein tied or locked stitches are produced at predetermined intervals by passing selected needle loops through and also closely around another needle loop so as to cause said loops to be tied one upon another.

In forming tied or locked stitches of this character needles are employed having a plurality, say two, of independently displaceable latches located one below another on the needle stem, said needles being operated at predetermined intervals to cause a loop of newly fed thread laid between the latches to be drawn through an old loop on the needle without casting off said latter loop and subsequently to pass the first-named or new loop over and closely around said old loop so as to become tied thereon.

According to the present invention a flat bar having a plurality of pivotally displaceable ing on said plural latch needles either the customary unlocked stitches or locked' stitches' at will, said means functioning to impart to the needles differing degrees of motion. one of which motions produces the ordinary stitches and another motion produces the locked or tied stitches. Preferably the unlocked stitches are produced on alternate knitted courses, the remaining alternate courses being composed of locked or tied stitches, and the different needle motions for producing the two types of stitches are advantageously imparted from two different types of, needle operating cams which are caused to function alternately. V

For the purpose of more fully describing the nature of this invention reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:--

Figure 1 illustrates'in part-sectional end elevation a flat bar knitting machine fitted with double, latch needles and mechanism for producing thereon alternate unlocked and locked stitches.

Figure 2 is a front elevational view of the two needle-operating cams and displaceable cam 3 truck shown in Figure 1. v 90 Figure 3 illustrates in front elevation means knitting machine is provided employing needles 7 Figure 7 illustrates successive steps in the needle operation required to produce alternate courses of unlocked and locked stitches on a machine in accordance with this invention.

Figure 8 illustrates a portion of hiitted fabric composed of alternate courses of unlocked and locked stitches such as is produced on a machine in accordance with this invention, said fabric illustrating'fashioning by narrowing.

Figure 9 is a portion of fabric similar to that shown in Figure 8 but illustrating fashioning pro-.

duced by widening.

Figure 10 shows a double latch needle with flexible hook or beard and a transfer point acting thereon, this type of needle being particularly applicable for use when it is desired to fashion by narrowing.

same will be described as applied to a machine of the cottons patent type. Heretofore in such a machine a needle bar fitted. with a series of bearded needles is operated through lever mechanism from the machine cam shaft alternatively to project and retract all of the needles on said bar simultaneously, thread being fed across the needles while projected, and a presser bar and ,sinkers functioning to assist in the stitch formation.

In the present invention latch needles 1 are fitted on the needle bar 2, and said needles are provided with a plurality of pivoted latches, preferably two, spaced one below the other on the needle stem.

When it is required to make ordinary knitted stitches the needles only require to be projected to an extent sufiicient for feeding thread into the needle hooks and to clear the old loops beneath the latches which coact with said hooks, the said old loops being knocked over on the retraction of the 'needles. When, however, locked or tied stitches are formed, the .needles are projected to an extent sufficient for enabling thread to be fed between the latches of the double-latch needles and to clear the old loops beneath or to the rear of the second latch, the loops of newly fed thread on the subsequent retraction of the needles being drawn through and passed around the old loops, which latter are retained in the needle hooks.

To impart the greater degree of movement to In one method of carrying out the invention the needle bar for producing the locked or tied stitches at predetermined intervals, a cam is advantageously provided additional to that em ployed for producing the normal knitted stitch; means being provided for bringing either of said cams into operation as required.

In the arrangement illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings two cams 3, 4, are fitted close together side by side on the customary cam shaft 5, the needle bar 2 being vertically reciprocated from said cams through the intermediary of a pivoted lever device 6 carrying a cam truck 7 which is maintained by spring or other means 8 in engagement with the cams and is adapted to ride thereon.

As aforestated, when a course of ordinary stitches is to be produced the thread 9 requires to be fed by the feeder 10 into the needle hooks, whereas when a course or locked or tied stitches is required, the thread 7m fed between the two latches 1a, 1b. Thus it will 'be appreciated. that to produce a course of locked stitches the needles 1 must be raised to a greater extent than when plain stitches are to be produced, andto this end one cam 4 is so designed that the part 4a of said cam with which the truck '7 engages during feed ing of thread for locked stitches is somewhat lower than the corresponding part 3a of the cam 3 with which said truck engages while thread is being fed for a course of ordinary stitches, and in this way the needles are moved to two different heights depending upon which of the cams 3, 4 is operating upon the truck 7.

To bring the cams 3, 4 into operation alternately, the truck '7 is slidably displaceable upon a short spindle 11 extending laterally of the cams and carried by the two arms 6a constituting the lower portion of the lever device 6. This slidable truck is displaced at predetermined intervals from the one cam to the other through the medium of a pivoted fork 12, and it will be appreciated that the moving of the truck 7 from one cam to the other must be efiected during a period in the motion of the machine when the peripheral faces of the two cams in the proximity of the truck are flush or level with each other. One such period occurs shortly after the thread feeding operation and while the needles are being lowered, therefore, it is advantageous that the means provided for moving the truck .should operate during this period.

One method of displacing the cam truck 7 is illustrated in Figure 3, wherein at each end of the cam shaft 5 is fitted a gear wheel 13 meshing with another gear wheel 14 fitted on a lay shaft 15 which may or may not extend the full length of the machine. The wheels 14 are advantageously twice the size of the wheels 13 so that same are rotated at half the speed of the cam .shaft 5 and cams 3 and 4. and on'each of said wheels 14 is a cam rise 16 extending approximately half way round each wheel, said cam rise 16 being alternately engaged by trucks 1'! on centrally pivoted levers 18 which levers are connected at their upper extremities to a longitudinally extending rod 19 to which the before-mentioned forked lever 12 is fixed. This arrangement is such that when the cams 3, 4 have been rotated to a position at which the needles are being lowered, that is to say, after the thread 9 has been fed to said needles, a truck 17 appertaining to one of the levers 18 is caused to rise on to a cam rise 16 appertaining to one of the gear wheels 14 and simultaneously truck 17 appertaining to the lever 18 at the opposite end of the pivoted jacks 22 to displace the sinkers 20 and draw the thread, is, on alternate motions of the machine, i. e. on alternate knitted courses, moved forward to a slightly greater extent.

This may be effected by providing at each end of the traverse of each slur cock 21 an adjustable stop 23 carried by an arm or bracket 24 fixed adjustably or otherwise to a longitudinally extending rod or bar 25. When the slur cock 21,

-which is traversed in the customary manner,

reaches one end of its movement one of the stops 23 coacts with an upstanding lug 26a. on a wheel 26 mounted on a rearwardly extending screwthreaded portion 27 of the slur cock and transmits a small rotary movement to said wheel 26 so as slidably to displace the slur cock 21 forwardly or rearwardly in accordance with the direction of rotation of said wheel 26, it being appreciated that at the opposite end of the traverse of the slur cook the second stop 23 functions to rotate the wheel 26 in an opposite direction and consequently displace the slur cock also in an opposite direction.

By this means the sinkers 20 operate on alternate knitted courses to draw more thread than on the remaining alternate courses.

Successive phases in the motion of the needles to produce alternate courses of unlocked and I looked stitches are clearly shown in Figure 7. The position indicated at A is that at which a needle has been raised by the cam 3 to clear an old loop it below the top latch 1a and new thread b is fed into the hook 1c, the needle being then lowered to cast off the old loop a over the new loop b which latter is retained in the hook, thus producing an ordinary knitted stitch. During the period of motion between positions A and B the cam truck 7 is moved from the cam 3 to the cam 4 as before-described and on the next upward motion of the needle same is brought to the position C at which the loop b is cleared below the top latch 1a. At this position a small cam rise 4b provided on the cam 4 functions to impart a short downward motion to the needle sufficient to cause the loop b to pass beneath the top latch 1a and at the back of the bottom latch 1b as shown at position D. The needle then continues to rise to the position indicated at E which position the loop b has been cleared below the lower latch 1b (which latch has been lowered by the engagement therewith of said loop b) and another thread 0 is fed between the two latches la,- 11), while the needle is maintained raised.

0n the next succeeding downward movement of the needle the loop b appertaining to the previously formed ordinary stitch passes upwardly along the needle, closes the lower latch 1b on to the upper latch 1a and passes into the hook above said top latch 1a, the newly fed thread loop 12* being retained between the two latches. During this part of the motion the loop 0 is drawn through the loop b as indicated at position F, and on the continued downward motion of the needle the loop 0 rises on the needle, lifts and ,is higher than that indicated at A, and at this closes the top latch la on to the hook 1c and is cast ofl. said needle, thus becoming tied upon the loop b and constituting a locked stitch as indicated at position G.

The necessary motions for producing another plain stitch are then effected, it being understood that during the period between the positions E and F the cam truck 7 is again moved back on to the plain earn 3.

Fashioning of the fabricduring the production thereof may be eflected by the employment of fashioning mechanism customarily employed on a flat bar machine and where fashioning is produced by narrowing as illustrated in Figure 8 same is advantageously efi'ected immediately after knitting a course of unlocked, or ordinary stitches.

When fashioning by narrowing it is advantageous to employ needles having hooks of a spring or resilient nature somewhat similar to that of a bearded needle, the customary transfer points 28 being adapted to coact with and press said flexible hooks and maintain some pressedduring the transfer of a loop from the needle to the point, the action or the point on the flexlble hook being clearly illustrated in Figure 10. In Figure 8 narrowing is illustrated at the selvedged edge at the positions marked N.

When fashioning by widening all that is necessary is to feed thread to one or more additional needles at either or both ends of selected knitted courses so as to produce stitches thereon.

In Figure 9 is illustrated a portion of fabric fashioned by widening, an additional needle being brought into operation at the positions indicated at W.

I claim:

1. A flat bar knitting machine embodying in combination needles having a plurality of displaceable latches located one above another on the needle stem, 9, displaceable carrier for said needles, a driven cam shaft, two cams mounted on said shaft and functioning to impart reciprocatory motion to the needles, one of said cams operating at predetermined times to displace the needles to a position wherein thread is fed into the needle hooks and the other cam operating at other predetermined times to displace the needles to a position wherein thread is fed between the pivoted latches, means through which the said operations are transmitted from the cams to the needles and selective means whereby the desired cam may be brought into operation to effect its peculiar movement of the needles.

2. In a fiat bar knitting machine as claimed in claim 1, pivoted lever mechanism associated with the needle carrier, a cam truck carried by said lever mechanism, said cam truck being adapted selectively to engage with the two needle operating cams and means for effecting relative movement between the cams and said cam truck in a direction axially of the cams so as to bring either of said cams into operation.

3. In a flat bar knitting machine, embodying in combination, needles having a plurality of displaceable latches located one above another on the needle stem, a displaceable carrier for said needles, means for operating said carrier, including a displaceable cam truck. two cams adapted to operate on said cam truck and functioning to impart reciprocatory motion to the V needles, one of saidcams operating at predetermined times to displace the needles to a position wherein thread is fed into the needle hooks and the other cam operating at other predetermined times to displace the needles to a position wherein thread is fed between the pivoted latches, additional cam mechanism and means operable by said additional cam mechanism for moving said cam truck from one needle operating cam to another subsequent to each thread feeding motion.

4. A flat bar knitting machine, embodying in combination, needles having a plurality of pivoted latches spaced one below the other on the needle stem, 9. displaceable carrier bar for said needles, a needle-operating cam device, means associated with said cam device for imparting ,at selected intervals differing degrees of motion to the needles, thread feeding means, said thread ieedlng means operating at predetermined times to feed thread into the needle hooks and at other predetermined times to feed thread between the pivotal latches, the position at which thread is red being determined by the aforesaid cam device, sinkers operating between the needles, and means for automatically varying the .amount of thread drawn or sunk by said sinkers at predetermined intervals.

5. In a flat bar knitting machine as claimed in claim 4, Jacks coacting with the sinkers, a trav- I ersable slur cock, said slur cock operating through the intermediary of said jacks to project sinkers between the needles and means for automatically adjusting the slur cock at predetermined tting courses so as to alter the amount of thread drawn by the sinkers.

6. In a fiat bar, knitting machine as claimed in claim 4, jacks coactlng with the sinkers, a travers able slur cock, said slur cock operating through the intermediary of said jacks to project sinkers between the needles, a rotatable member associated with the slur cock and means for automatically rotating said member alternately in opposite directions at alternate knitted courses so as to vary the amount of thread drawn by the sinkare.

7. In a flat bar knitting machine the combination of a row of needles each having a hook at its end and a plurality of pivoted displaceable latches located below the hook and one below the other on the needle stem, a bar carrying the said needles, a feeder for delivering thread to said needles, a. driven cam shaft, 9. pair of cams on the said shaft, and means'between the said needle bar and the cams whereby motion is transmitted from the cams to the needle bar to cause the needles to be moved to take the thread and knit it into a fabric, said means including a shiftable element whereby the needle bar may be put into cooperative engagement with one cam or the other at will, one of the cams being constructed to operate the needles to such degree that the thread is fed into the needle hooks and ordinary knitted stitches are formed, and the other cam is constructed to operate the needle to such degree that the thread is fed between the latches of the needles and locked or tied stitches are formed.

8. The combination stated in claim 7, wherein the two cams are located close side by side on the shaft to facilitate" movement of the 'shiftable element back and forth from one cam to the other.

ROBERT KIRKLAND MILIS. 

